Bonds of Friendship
by Seven Skies
Summary: Yosuke doesn't deal well with the death of his wife but Souji is there for him. One-shot, friendship fic.


**Bonds of Friendship  
**  
He breathed heavily.

The air on the hill was clean as much as the view was breathtaking, but the very same was the opposite for the tiny graveyard in Inaba. It was a very lonesome place, one people did not often come to. Death in a small town remained fresh and raw, especially one that belonged to a citizen who had lived in Inaba all her life.

Though it was not unexpected, the death of his wife had left him horribly empty. There was an aching in his heart similar to what he had felt some ten years earlier when his first crush had been murdered. He stood before the grave, silently tracing the outline of her name and looked over at his own in red.

This was where he would be buried too, when he died.

"...it's getting late."

He turned around, gently using his own fingers to rub away all traces of tears from his eyes. "Yeah, I know. I just..."

"Don't want your daughter to see you cry?" It was a gentle question; his best friend had always been known to be strangely gentle when the time called for it.

"Haha," he managed, laughing it off lightly. "Can't imagine what she'd do seeing me cry..."

But his laughter had only provoked a more subtle frown on the other's face. "It won't do her any good for you to keep it all inside," his best friend pointed out quietly, looking thoughtful, "or you either."

Yosuke glanced away. "I suppose..."

"You need to talk to her about dying and the afterlife too."

He sighed. "Souji, I _can't_. She died only last week and I... I'm not..."

"You're definitely strong enough," Souji said firmly, "and you want what's best for Sakuya too."

"Souji-"

"It was the same for Nanako."

Yosuke blinked and straightened. "Nanako's... mother?" he asked, weakly.

"Though it's not exactly the same," Souji replied, nodding. "My uncle couldn't face her and he was afraid." His voice grew a little sad, but it remained firm all the same, "He was a coward."

He flinched at the word. "Right... I know I'm one..." He inhaled heavily again. "I couldn't handle the hospital so Yuki had to take care of all that. I couldn't face Sakuya so Nanako had to take care of her for me..." He sniffed, fighting off the tears. "I couldn't... organise the funeral so... Kanji and you had to do it..."

"It's not too late to stop running, Yosuke."

Hurriedly and without grace, he rubbed at his eyes again, trying to stop himself from tearing - trying to stop himself from crying. But he was sobbing harder and faster than he could use his fingers to wipe away the water and it was hard to see through all the moisture but he felt Souji walk towards him and-

Yosuke cried into his best friend's shoulder. "Damn... you," he managed inbetween sobs and sniffs. "Not... this... again!"

But Souji only chuckled. "You know, no matter where you run... I'll always be there for you." His best friend was an unwavering tree that stood in the path of a storm and a small river that meandered gently through all the twists and turns of life. In the cold corner of the graveyard, Souji and his hands and his embrace was warmer than the sun's rays of a cool winter day.

When he had finally calmed down, he pulled away and pulled off a weak-hearted glare. "Just don't let Rise-chan see us hugging like this. She'll get the wrong idea."

Souji just laughed again, heartily. "Actually," he said, smiling, "she might want to hug you too."

The thought of having Rise hug him filled his head; the idol had grown even more beautiful growing up but... "No way, partner! I'm only loyal to one person in my heart and that's..." Yosuke glanced back at the grave and swallowed hard before he managed a trembling smile. "Hey, don't worry in heaven, okay? Sakuya and I will do just fine... And everyone, too. We miss you very much, and we'll... I'll always love you."

Giving the grave one last look, he turned back to Souji, grinning. "Okay, let's all have steak at Junes. I'll call the rest and last one there pays for everything!" Yosuke caught sight of the surprise of his best friend's face and smirked to himself as he tore down the path, already planning on how to achieve his victory. He didn't wait for Souji to catch up because he knew, no matter where he went, his best friend would always be there for him.

*

When he was sure Yosuke was out of his sight, Souji turned back to the grave when he saw as he did earlier - invisible to Yosuke's eye - the spirit of a recently deceased friend. "He'll be fine now," Souji said gently, assuring the spirit who was staring down the path that Yosuke had taken. "There's no need to worry for him anymore. You should move on."

_Thank you,_ she whispered, _you... were always there for him. For us. Our leader._

"We're friends," he said. "We'll always be, no matter what."

_No matter what,_ the spirit echoed, smiling, but Souji saw the tears she was shedding, too.

"Are you scared?"

_Yes... But I know you'll take care of everyone for sure. Thank you... Souji. Good-bye._

He watched as she slowly faded away. "Farewell," he murmured softly, "rest in peace... Chie."

**fin.**

**Notes: **Written for the P4 kink meme; prompt was _Souji-Yosuke relationship as heterosexual life partners._


End file.
